Ask anyone in Wellesley what's new downtown and you'll get the same two answers: Charm Ramen & Rice took over the old Lemon Thai space, and Fiorella's is finally getting bigger. Both are true. Both are part of Wellesley Square's September story.
The construction timeline is one part of the restaurant story: Fiorella's expansion was approved, while the streetscape project is now wrapping up. The library's exterior renovation has also been underway since early July. Two different projects, one shared deadline, and it lands right as the fall dining crowd is supposed to show up.
The Restaurant Story You've Already Heard
As The Swellesley Report reported, Charm Ramen & Rice opened its doors at 555 Washington Street in April, in the space Lemon Thai occupied for years before it. Co-owner Ae Trahan spent years doing the books for restaurants around Wellesley before opening one of her own, which is part of why the place reads less like a first-timer's gamble and more like someone who already knew where the margins get thin. She and partners Aum and Auy trained in California with a Japanese chef ahead of the opening, and it shows in details that go beyond the menu. The nearly 50-seat room is decorated with manga figurines Trahan collects, and the dining room also has a mural. Ramen bowls run $15 to $20, and the shio-style Simple Ramen, built on clear chicken broth with chashu and a swirl of fish cake, is the one locals keep bringing up.
According to WhatNow, Fiorella's Trattoria is nearly doubling its indoor seating with a 47-seat addition, approved by the Select Board in December. The expansion carries some family weight. Rémon's father Marcel opened the original Café Fiorella in Belmont back in 1986, and Rémon launched the first full-service Fiorella's Cucina in Newton in 2000. Today the family runs three cucina and three trattoria locations across Greater Boston, and the Wellesley trattoria growing into its neighbor's old space is the kind of expansion that only happens when a location is already working.
The restaurant changes are one part of the activity underway in Wellesley Square.
Fiorella's Expansion and the Streetscape Project
During the Select Board hearing on Fiorella's expansion, a neighbor raised concerns about traffic and stormwater. Town officials pointed specifically to the ongoing streetscape project in Wellesley Square as the thing that should help alleviate those problems.
What's Actually Under Construction Right Now
The piece of this that's easiest to miss if you're not walking through the square regularly is the Wellesley Free Library's exterior renovation. Work started in early July and is expected to run through mid-September, and during certain phases, parking at the library has been limited enough that the town has been directing patrons to the Cameron Street driveway or the underground lot instead. The library has also had to close early on occasion while crews are on site.
If you've found yourself circling for a spot near Washington Street more than usual this summer, or noticed the library keeping odd hours, this is why. The library renovation is one part of the construction activity in Wellesley Square this summer.
There's a smaller sign of downtown's shifting rhythm too. Since January 1, Wellesley restaurants have been operating under the town's Skip the Stuff bylaw, which means single-use utensils and condiments now come by request only rather than by default. It's a minor thing to notice at Charm or Fiorella's, but it's one more small marker that the square's daily texture has changed even before the sidewalks finish changing under it.
A Nearby Fall Flower Show
For a nearby fall outing, the New England Fall Flower Show runs three days at the Massachusetts Horticultural Society's Garden at Elm Bank, September 18 through 20, with more than 50 curated vendors, food trucks, and a lineup of demos and speakers. It's a fifteen-minute drive from Wellesley Square.
The Wellesley Free Library, mid-renovation as it is, is also hosting a solo exhibition worth the trip: The Familiar Reimagined, a collection from artist Eddie Bruckner, on view at the Main Branch.
The Read for Anyone Who Lives Here
Wellesley Square's dining options are changing this year as the streetscape project wraps up and library exterior work continues. The library work is expected to run through mid-September, and the New England Fall Flower Show starts September 18. The exhibition at the Main Branch is another part of the square's fall calendar.
Charm is open, and Fiorella's expansion has been approved. Those developments give residents two restaurant updates to follow this fall.
Wellesley residents thinking about what any of this means for their own street, their own commute to the train lots, or their own home's place in a downtown that's genuinely changing shape this fall are always welcome to reach out to Bell Property Partners. And if you're simply curious what a town this actively in motion has done to your home's value lately, we're happy to put together a complimentary home valuation, no obligation, just a clear read on where things stand.
